The certification process involves the following steps:
- Application Portfolio - Submit the completed application portfolio
- CTP Exams - Successfully complete three CTP exams covering Law, Management, and Accounting/Finance
- TMA Standards Subcommittee Review - Receive notification of eligibility upon thorough review by the subcommittee
Application Portfolio
As part of the Application Portfolio, CTP and CTA applicants must complete and submit the following to TMA for thorough review and verification by the TMA Standards Subcommittee:
- Application for Certification (Form 1) and a $295 nonrefundable application fee along with a copy of college transcripts or degree
- Three Confidential Professional Reference forms (Form 2)
CTP applicants must also complete and submit:
- Five Case Description forms (Form 3)
- Five Confidential Client Confirmation forms (Form 4)
Note: Depending on your version of Adobe Acrobat, you may be able to save these documents to your desktop. If you do not have the capability to save these forms, you may either complete them interactively and immediately print them out or print and complete them manually.
One Client Confirmation form must be completed for each Case Description (each reported case must have a corresponding client confirmation). Applicants who are from the banking or lending community, or have experience in a field in which providing clients’ names and contact information is prohibited or impossible to provide (i.e., the company has been liquidated and finding clients to attest to responsibilities cannot be done), may seek Client Confirmations from immediate supervisor(s) in the applicant’s current firm or the firm in which the applicant worked at the time of the engagement. Applicants must fully disclose the circumstances as to why these particular individuals were recruited to complete the client confirmations. To become certified, these proxies must be able to fully explain the applicant’s responsibilities so that the Standards Subcommittee is confident that the applicant has the required restructuring experience. The Standards Subcommittee has the authority to reject the Client Confirmation or the circumstances under which certain individuals were recruited.
Application Portfolios are considered complete when all above documents are received by TMA. Applicants CANNOT sit for an examination until they have submitted their Application for Certification form and $295 application fee.
Submit all portfolio materials and fees to:
Turnaround Management Association
Attention: Certification
150 South Wacker Drive, Suite 900
Chicago, IL 60606
Fax: 312-578-8336 or E-mail: certification@turnaround.org
Education Requirements
CTP and CTA applicants must possess a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university or at least 5 years of executive management, consulting or loan workout experience.
Experience Requirements (CTPs only)
CTP applicants must possess a minimum of 4 years of executive management, senior management, loan workout, turnaround or restructuring consulting, or turnaround interim management experience. In these roles, candidates must have C-level experience (as a CFO, COO, or CRO) or equivalent leading the turnaround of companies suffering financial distress or in a financial crisis.
The candidate must have substantial, demonstrated experience in the financial, legal and managerial components of a turnaround as well as all aspects of strategic evaluation and planning, crisis management, and business reconfiguration or liquidation, which includes managing cash in crisis situations, negotiating with creditors and vendors, and knowledge of the various aspects of bankruptcy and corporate law as they relate to corporate renewal.
Blank Experience Grid (Form)
Note: Applicants who are working in the corporate renewal profession and have acquired some, but not all of the necessary work experience are encouraged to pursue the CTA certification. This interim step to full certification indicates that the candidate has demonstrated proficiency in the legal, managerial, and financial aspects of a turnaround, and is concurrently working toward the CTP designation.
Certification Exams
The three subjects covered by the certification exams are Law, Finance/Accounting, and Management. Each exam is designed to assess advanced knowledge of the corporate renewal profession in the U.S. Candidates who pass the examinations have demonstrated competence in the financial, legal and managerial aspects of a turnaround.
Candidates have 24 months to pass all three exams. The exams are offered multiple times throughout the year in a variety of locations nationwide. They are primarily essay format and are offered in English only. The exams do not have to be completed in any specific order.
View a list of upcoming exams and learn more about the content and how to prepare.
TMA Standards Subcommittee Review
The TMA Standards Subcommittee, comprised of veteran turnaround professionals, reviews all completed Application Portfolios. Subcommittee members evaluate submitted documents, verify reported experience, interview prior clients and professional references, and make a final determination as to the applicant’s status based on the depth, breadth and quality of the information provided.
As a result of this review, applicants will either be approved for CTP certification, approved for CTA certification, notified that their application portfolio materials are incomplete or insufficient, or denied certification entirely. It is in the applicant’s best interest to provide as much detail as possible to help the Standards Subcommittee understand the role the applicant played in all reported engagements.
TMA submits all complete Application Portfolios to the Standards Subcommittee on the first business day of each month.
All decisions rendered by the Standards Subcommittee regarding status and eligibility will be communicated to the applicant, in writing, within 6 weeks of portfolio submission.
Additional Information